Argumentation
Terms
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- Absolute Sample Size
- The number of members in the sample
- Acceptance
-
One possible response to an argument.
The agreement to accept the argument as presented, to find it okay, not having any major flaws - Accessibility
- The availability of evidence
- Adequacy
- adequate to support claim
- Ad hominem fallacy
- (to person) intention effort to attack the person rather than the argument, damaging reputation, name-calling
- Ad populum fallacy
- appealing to the audience and not the argument
- Advocacy
- to advocate..promoting or opposing publically
- Argumentation
- cooperative activity of developing and advancing arguments and responding
- Argument
- claim advanced with reason or reasons in its support
- Audience
- people for whom we dev our arguments
- Power
- the capacity to wield influence, to shape important decisions that affect the lives of others
- Public discourse
- open discussion of issues affect everyone
- pluralistic culture
- everyone sees the world differently, value different things,
- Values
- deeply held moral commitments acquired from family, cultural background, religious, personal experience
- rule of reason
- the agreement to engage in cooperative argumentation.
- procedures
- the rules or guidelines of argument
- claim
- statement the advocate believes or is in the process of evaluating
- reason
- statement advanced for the purpose of establishing a claim
- conclusion
- claim that has been reached by process of reasoning
- inference
- conclusion drawn on the basis of reasons
- case
- series of arguments, all advanced to support the same general contention or set of conclusions
- Affirmative case
- In a policy debate, a series of arguments challenging the status quo
- A fortiori argument
- A literal analogy that asserts that what is true of its evidence case is even more likely or even less likely to be true of its conclusion case
- Ambiguity
- More than one meaning of a word or phrase in a single context
- Analogy
- For the sake of supporting a claim, a comparison of something with which we are familiar to something with which we are less familiar, or about which we have some question
- Antecedent
- The "if" clause in a conditional statement; "that which comes before"
- Appeal
- A persuasive strategy directed to the audience's emotions, sense of humor, or deeply held loyalties and commitments
- Appeal to authority
- An appeal that urges compliance with the directive of a person, group, or document possessing power
- Arguing comparative advantages
- A response to a pragmatic argument or policy proposal; arguing that an alternative course of action carries greater practical advantages than the proposed plan does
- Arguing from correlation alone
- A fallacy; attributing cause simply on the basis of events occuring together
- Arguing from ignorance
- A fallacy; falsely assuming that a conclusion can be reached on the basis of the absence of evidence. Because something has not been disproved, it has been proved
- Arguing from succession alone
- A fallacy; attributing cause simply on the basis of one event preceding another. Also called "arguing post hoc"..after this therefore because of this
- Argumentative contexts
- The spaces, venues, and relationships in which arguments are made and heard
- Argumentative definition
- A definition employed strategically to categorize an object or event so as to support a particular conclusion to an argument
- Argument from direction
- An argument that strings together two or more conditional statements to predict a remote result from a first step
- Argument from example
- an argument that draws a conclusion about an entire class of objects or events based on a particular instance or a limited number of cases
- Argument from function
- An argument that locates the essential nature of an object, event, or institution in its social or natural function
- Argument from intent
- An argument that affirms that the meaning or essential nature of an object if document is revealed in the intended meaning of its authors
- Argument from quality
- An argument that expresses a preference for the unique, the beautiful, the rare, or the unusual
- Argument from quantity
- An argument that affirms numerical considerations as an index of significance
- Argument from sign
- An argument that reasons from an effect back to a cause
- Argument virtues
- Those moral qualities and skills that help people think and act morally in an argumentative situation, and thus pursue argumentation in a manner that promotes and improves its practices
- Arrangement fallacy
- The fallacy that creates a false impression by ordering, associating, or grouping items of evidence in a misleading way
- Attitudinal Inherency
- in policy debate, the inherency that shows that current attitudes or beliefs contribute to the problems caused by the status quo
- Audience analysis
- seeking an accurate sense of the nature of the audience so you can adapt your arguments to that audience
- Biased testimony
- testimony from individuals who stant to gain if what they say is accepted
- Burden of proof
- in policy debate, the obligation to provide sufficient evidence in support of an assertion
- Categorical argument
- an argument composed of three categorical statements: the two statements that are its reasons, or premised, and one that is its conclusion. also called a categorical syllogism
- Categorical statement
- a statement that assets a relationship between two categories, or classes, of objects.
- Causal agent
- In a hypothesis, a testable element in the alleged cause that is capable of producing an observed effect
- Causal generalization
- an argument that alleges a causal relationship between two categories, or classes, of events
- Circular definition
- a definition of a term by reference only to factors inherent in or strongly implied by the definition itself
- Civil disobedience
- The intentional decision to disobey a law or directive of a gov't authority for moral reasons
- Coherece
- A test of narrative arguments that asks whether the components in story create a meaningful and consistent whole
- Common usage
- As a source of definition, the meaning of a term in everyday language
- Complementary reasons
- a pair of reasons that must work together to lend support to their conclusion
- conclusion case
- in an analogy, an instance in the argument about which a claim is being advanced
- Conclusion relationship
- in a figurative analogy, the relationship being urged in connection with the conclusion
- concurrent testimony
- testimony that is consistent with other available sources of testimony on the topic
- Conditional argument
- an argument built around an "if-then" statement or an equivalent. also called hypothetical syllogism
- Conditional statement
- In a conditional argument, the "if-then" statement
- Connectives
- Reasons that consist of beliefs, values, assumptions, or generalizations that link evidence to a conclusion
- Consequent
- The "then clause in a conditional or "if then" statement; an event that follows from or is a result of another event
- Consideration
- One possible response to an argument; an agreement to think about the argument further, to withhold any final judgment about its quality for the time being
- Continuum fallacy
- A fallacy; a false assumption that qualitative changes along a line of progression do not occur if we cannot agree about exactly where such changes occur
- Control group
- as one means of assessing a causal generalization; a group, paralleling the experimental group, in which the suspected causal agent is witheld or eliminated
- Conversion
- in a universal negativr or particular affirmative statement, the process of switching the statement's subject and predicate terms in order to create an equivalent statement
- Convertible statement
- A statement in which the subject and predicate terms are distributed similarly. Universal negative and particular affirmative statements are convertible.
- cooperation
- As a virtue of ethical advocacy, a willingness to engage the argumentative process so that a rational resolution of the issues can be achieved
- correlated
- Occurring together with regularity.
- Courage in argument
- As a virtue of ethical advocacy, a willingness to accept the risks associated with open advocacy of one's position, even when that position is unpopular or dangerous.
- Credibility
- As a test of evidence, a source's reputation for accuracy and reliability.
- Disjunctive argument
- An argument that presents limited options; two enumerated alternatives, or disjuncts, marked by an "either-or" statement.
- Dilemma
- A disjunctive argument that forces a choice between limited and undesirable options.
- Dispositional Analysis
- Audience analysis aimed at ascertaining audience attitudes toward your topic and perhaps toward you as an advocate.
- Distinction without a difference
- A definition that suggests that a category exists, without adequately explaining how objects in this category differ from objects in similar categories.
- Distributed term
- In a categorical argument, a term that, in a statement, refers to every member of the category it represents.
- Editorial Process
- A check on the quality of research published in a periodical; careful review of submitted research reports.
- Emotional appeal
- Engaging the audience's emotions for the purpose of persuasion.
- End terms
- In a categorical argument, the two terms that appear once in a reason and once in the conclusion
- Enthymeme
- Aristotle's term for a truncated or abbreviated categorical argument, missing one or more of the basic components, such as a reason or a conclusion.
- Enumeration argument
- An argument that sets out alternative explanations or options and then follows a process of elimination.
- Equivocation
- A problem of definition; changing meaning of a key term in the course of an argument.
- Essential nature argument
-
An
argument that focuses on the
"essence" or unchanging nature of an organization, object, person, entity, or work of art.
- Etymology
- origin of a word
- Evidence
- A reason rooted in observation.
- Evidence case
-
In a literal analogy, a familiar or widely established instance that is used as the basis for the
argument.
- Evidence relationship
- In a figurative analogy, the familiar relationship pair that is used as support for the conclusion
- Exclusive Disjuncts
- In a disjunctive argument, two alternatives that cannot both be true at the same time
- Expert testimony
- The judgment or opinion of a qualified specialist in a discipline about matters relevant to that discipline.
- Extent of the generalization:
- In a generalization from a sample, the portior of the population that is said to exhibit a particular property.
- External consistency
- s a test of evidence, the requirement that evidence must not be sharply at odds with either the majority of evidence from other sources or with the best evidence from other sources.
- Fact
- A claim that can potentially be verified as either true or false.
- Fact, proposition of
- A statement that reports, describes, predicts, or makes a causal claim.
- Fallacy
- An argument that is invalid or otherwise so seriously flawed as to render it unreliable.
- Fallacy of hasty generalization
- A generalization based on a sample that is too small to support it
- Fallible sign
- An effect with more than one possible cause, though one cause is typical.
- False Dilemma
- A fallacy; a dilemma argument that uses artificially limited options to mislead an audience.
- Falsifiable
- A criterion of evaluation for a hypothesis; capable of being shown false.
- Fidelity
- A test of narrative argument that takes us outside the story and into our own experiences to ask whether the story reflects what we know to be true about life experience and human nature.
- Figurative analogy
- A comparison between things that are not of the same type, that come from different realms of experience; a metaphor.
- Finding
- In the process of sampling from a population, what was discovered about members of the sample.
- Generalizations from a sample
- Claims that take, as their evidence, observation of a sample drawn from a population, and advance a general conclusion about members of the population not directly observed.
- Genetic Argument
- An argument that looks to origins as evidence of essential nature.
- Harms
- In policy debate, a problem or problems resulting from the status quo.
- Honesty
- As a virtue of ethical advocacy, a commitment not to willingly mislead, and generally a regard for what is or what we take to be true.
- Human nature perspectives
- Ethical perspectives that develop around one or more essential qualities of human nature
- Hypothesis
- An explanatory statement affirming that one or more events cause another event to occur.
- Imminence
- A test of a policy case; whether the status quo is already producing serious, undesirable consequences, or is likely to do so in the near future.
- Inclusive Disjuncts
- In a disjunctive argument, two alternatives that might both be true at the same time.
- Indicators
- Words and phrases such as "because" and "therefore" that provide important clues about the reasons and conclusions in an argument.
- Inductive Argument
- An argument whose reasons lead to probable conclusions. Inductive arguments typically move from specific observations to general claims.
- Inductive Leap
- A process in which the conclusion of an argument moves beyond its stated evidence.
- Infallible sign
- An effect that virtually always and only accompanies a particular cause.
- Inherency
- A test of a policy case; whether problems or "harms" are inherent, resulting directly from the status quo, not from extraneous or accidental circumstances.
- Intermediate conclusion
- A statement in an argument that serves first as a conclusion and then as a reason for some additional conclusion.
- Internal consistency
- As a test of evidence, the requirement that evidence must not contradict itself.
- Judicial analogy
- A literal analogy that insists on similar treatment for people, ideas, or institutions in similar circumstances.
- Labeling
- A strategy of definition; condemning or commending a person, group, idea, or institution by use of a suggestive name or term rather than through presenting reasons.
- Lay Testimony
- A report of someone's observation, experience, or opinion on a topic not requiring special expertise.
- Linguistic consistency
- One of the three tests of an argument, along with support and validity; the clarity of the argument's language and its use of terms in the same way throughout the argument.
- Linguistic conventions
- Recognized methods of expressing a meaning indirectly.
- Linguistic link
- A repeated phrase or term that links statements to one another.
- Literal analogy
- A direct comparison between two allegedly similar items or cases.
- Logical sense
- One's sense of how arguments develop.
- Majoring on minors
-
The fallacy
that focuses attention on minor or inconsequential points to draw attention away from important ones.
- Metonymy
- The use of a single object to represent another associated object
- Middle term
- In a categorical argument. the term that appears in both reasons a- not in the conclusion.
- Mixed Metaphor
- A combination of images that do not belong together
- Modus ponens
- Affirming the antecedent in a conditional statement to create a valid conditional argument; "mode that affirms"
- Modus tollens
- Denying the consequert in a conditional statement to create a valid conditional argument; "mode that denies."
- Necessary Conclusion
- A particular conclusion to which the reasons or premises in a deductive argument—wr - accepted as true—unavoidably lead.
- Necessary Condition
- A condition without which another event cannot occur
- Negative case
- In a policy debate, a series of arguments supporting the status quo.
- News and commentary publications
- Periodicals that specialize in reporting news and presenting informed editorial opinions.
- Novel benefit
- In a policy case, an unanticipated improvement in the audience's condition as the result of implementing the plan.
- Observational study
- Study based on examination of existing data sets in an effort to discover correlations.
- Original Intent
- As a source of definition. the meaning of a word or phrase in its original context, or what the initial defin-- of a term meant by it.